Such Wicked Intent
by cardiffictionlocked1895
Summary: He let his guard down for not even half an hour, but the brief conversation that took place because of it might just be enough to save his life and doom hers. Takes place during and after the Avengers movie. AU. LokixOC. Part 1 of my Mortality series
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: __ In case you decide to ignore the summary, this is a LokixOC fic. Don't like, don't read. I will try to stay in character but since Loki's not exactly what I'd call romantic, it's not going to be easy. If you think I'm starting to go out of his character just tell me. And please, please, please, review. Is five reviews on this chapter too much to ask? -JC_

Such Wicked Intent

_Just a puppet on a lowly string_

_Aw, who would ever wanna be king?_

_-Coldplay, _Vida la Viva

Chapter 1- Loki

"Sir, we found this one lurking outside the tunnel entrance."

I barely looked up, but I could tell even with one glance that it was the same girl I had been considering capturing before- same blonde hair, same blue-green eyes that were now scanning the darkened underground passage anxiously, a gag clamped over her mouth. Barton pinned her arms behind her with one hand. "Kill her."

The agent started to drag her away, but as he turned, her leg shot up and hit him hard where it counts the most. Barton crumpled to the ground, and the girl jumped up, ripping the gag off. I had her pressed up against the wall in an instant. Strangely enough, there was no fear in her eyes.

"Most humans don't get this far. But I like you. Perhaps that's because it's your nature to rebel…" I pushed a strand of hair back her face, brushing her cheek in the process. She shrank back, but the action seemed unnatural, like it hadn't been her original reaction.

She laughed bitterly. "That's coming from the man who enjoys killing people."

I leaned over and whispered in her ear. "Who said I enjoy it?" I looked over at Barton, who was finally getting his feet. "I've changed my mind. I'll keep her as a hostage. Thor has always had a soft spot for mortal woman." I grabbed both her wrists and willed my magic to rise to the surface. She gasped as she felt the weighted cuffs appear, connected by a long chain. "Don't bother with the gag. No one will be able to hear her down here, anyway."

As I watched him lead the girl away, I suddenly felt an odd urge to keep her close to me. I ignored it, thinking nothing would come of it.

I thought wrong.

_A/N: Yes, I realize this chapter was short. Bear with me people. I tend to switch POVs a lot._


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: Yeah, this chapter's a lot longer, thank God. I forgot to mention that originally Bree wrote a fanfic about Luna and Loki meeting for the first time under very different circumstances, but then I read another Avengers fic called 'Kindred Captives'. Even though I didn't get past the first five chapters (it was a Tasertricks fic) I thought I should rewrite Bree's story so the Loki met Luna during the Avengers movie. And trust me, this way is a ton easier. -JC_

Chapter 2- Luna

I knew I should have been terrified, but I just couldn't seem to summon the panic required to generate fear. My captor was inhumanly good-looking, even with his odd clothes, with long messy black hair and green eyes that flashed with pain and regret when he thought I wasn't paying attention. His touch was gentler than a sadist had a right to be. Even as he chained me with restraints he had apparently pulled from thin air, I couldn't muster up hatred for him. I _was_ angry, of course, but that was a given, since he seemed to have no problem with murdering people simply because he _could_. This was the guy who, according to the news, left eighty people dead in two days. That's got to be some kind of record. I wondered if I could get post-traumatic stress disorder from this. Now that I was thinking about it, it seemed entirely possible.

_Congrats, Luna. You've put yourself right into the palm of a psychopath. _

Behold, my achievement of the century.

My chances of a successful escape were about as unlikely as they could be. The walls were concrete, I was handcuffed, and there was without a doubt a guard outside my door. And it wasn't I actually knew my way around this place. My only source of light of was a tiny slit of a window in one of the walls.

I must have fallen asleep at some point during the night, because I woke with the feeling I was being watched. Sure enough, Loki was standing in the shadows, smirking. A little shriek erupted out of me, and he rolled his eyes. "Mortals," he muttered, "are amazingly predictable."

I sat up quickly, the blood rushing downward from my head. "What exactly do you need me for again? I was under the impression I was just another one of your pawns, though I seriously doubt you visit all of us every morning."

Loki's smirk grew. "You're mixing up pawns with bartering tools. Didn't you ever learn the definition of a hostage?"

So he was planning to trade me for something. Interesting. "So what happens if I don't cooperate?"

"You lose your mind. Funny how easy it is to take control of someone." He glanced at his glowing staff that I could have sworn wasn't there a moment before, then looked back at me. "Luna Haunting, isn't it?" The psycho held up my driver's license. "Who knew S.H.I.E.L.D. had a file on you?" _What the heck is S.H.I.E.L.D.?! _"Apparently your mother went insane when you were…what was it…oh, yes, eight, I believe." Loki made a mocking pitying noise. "And your father abandoned you at age seventeen. Barely over a year ago." Fresh rage built up inside me. He had found my weak spots so quickly it scared me. _Oh, lovely,_ I thought. **_Now_** _you're afraid._

My captor was staring at me again, this time curiously. "You don't look eighteen."

I ignored the pretense. "Why are you doing this?"

"All the killings? If I told you, you think I was lying." He turned to leave.

"Have you lied to me?"

His laughter was hard and condescending. "No, but the man who told you your father left you did." Then he was out of my reach, shutting the heavy door behind him.

What was I supposed to do with _that_? I tried desperately to remember the man who had broken the news to me, but my memory of the event was so hazy I couldn't even know for sure if it _had_ been broken to me. Images flashed through my brain so swiftly I only managed to hold on to one: a dark-skinned guy wearing an eye patch. And if that wasn't weird enough, I couldn't recall his name, much less his importance in the aftermath of my father's disappearance.

I sighed and gave up. I had heard once that our minds block out especially traumatic events, and that was definitely one of them. But I still felt as though there was more to it.

There was obviously more to Loki than I was seeing as well. It was pretty clear I was missing so many pieces of the puzzle, including the most important one: what on earth had driven him to murderer status? People just don't become overnight, and it was easy to see he was new at it. Speaking of earth, his clothes hinted he was from a place unknown to humans. He had called me a mortal…and that meant what exactly? That he was immortal? Was he even human at all?

I didn't really care either way at the moment. Loki had said that if I didn't do as he said, he would make me go insane. I didn't know how the heck he was planning on accomplishing that, and I didn't want to try to imagine it. I was certain, though, that he would eventually follow through with his threat no matter what I did. So that brought me back to my first and foremost priority: escaping.

And since that was impossible, I was probably going to die, which was just _great_.

Seconds later the door banged open.

Loki stared at me, dangerous amused shining in his eyes. He put out his hands toward me and twisted his wrist to the side. The cuffs snapped in half and slid off my wrists. He grabbed my forearm and led me out into the hallway. Abruptly my vision went black. That son of a bi*** had literally blinded me! I froze, panic rising in my chest.

He chuckled at my reaction. "You'll get your sight back in a minute." I could hear the sneer in his voice. Doubtlessly he was enjoying my helplessness while it lasted.

He guided me roughly through the underground complex, letting me trip over cracks every so often. Finally we reached our destination. I blinked, my eyes working properly again. Slouched against a wall was a man, terror painted across his features. He immediately sat up as soon as he noticed Loki. "I can get you anything you need! Anything at all!" He yelped. The name S.H.I.E.L.D. appeared once again, this time on his shirt.

Loki laughed without humor. "And so you shall." He grabbed the man by the collar and pulled him to his feet. "It just won't be your decision." Loki glanced over his shoulder at me, still grinning. "Because we all know freedom is by far life's greatest lie." He pressed the tip of his staff into the center of his captive's chest. The guy's eyes became black before returning to normal- with the exception of bright blue irises.

Loki calmly pushed him away and faced me. The moment our eyes met, the dreaded blindness returned. "That's what happens to people who have too much freedom." I couldn't tell for the life of me what direction the sadist was in. I felt him take me back to my cell, his hand on my elbow. When he pulled the door open, I stumbled, falling into him. Loki shoved me back into the room, not caring where I landed. I collapsed onto the floor, waiting for my vision to come back.

But, of course, it never did.

"You know, I'm really quite starting to like the benefits of having a blind hostage." He shut the door quietly, leaving me staring hopelessly into nothing.

_R&R? Pls?_


	3. Chapter 3

_A/N: So sorry it took me so long to update this. I'm to try to do more updates every week, possibly more often. Thank you to everyone who didn't unfollow/unfavorite this. Ily you guys. R&Ring would be awesome. I could use the motivation. -JC_

Chapter 3- Luna

The next time I opened my eyes, hours later, he had finally granted me the luxury of sight. Loki had already begun to yank me into a standing position, one hand white-knuckled around that freakish staff of his. His own eyes wore an oddly glazed look that scared me more than having one of my senses stolen from me had. He dragged me out of the cramped prison for the second time that day, but he was noticeably different; some of his usual dignity and confidence was gone, completely drained away. I could tell he was limping, though he made an effort to hide it.

We ended up in a room that was entirely secluded. Unlike most of the other parts of the underground complex, this one was empty except for us. Considering it had to have been at least midnight, I had a feeling it was normally like this. Loki sat down carefully, crossing his legs. I did the same. Out of nowhere the staff started glowing, its light radiating like a projector onto the wall in front of us. Suddenly I was staring at a staircase made of materials I couldn't give names to. A copy of Loki was posed at the top of it, talking to a creature, a cross between a man and a monster, though by the way it bared its teeth in an attempt to direct Loki, I could tell it favored the monster part.

I closed my eyelids for just a second, and by the time I finished blinking, I, too, was next to them, the sky a suffocating darkness surrounding us. My captor sighed at my appearance, as if it made this meeting all the more complicated. I looked back at the place we had been sitting a moment ago. Our bodies were still there. _This is officially_ _the weirdest night of my life._

The creature totally ignored me. "It is vital that everything tomorrow goes just as planned. If not…" It examined its dirty fingernails causally. "He'll be _extremely_ angry."

Loki smirked. "That's been made_ extremely_ clear to me." His tone was mocking. "So what was it exactly that you needed her for?"

Its breath reeked of unpleasant and merciless deaths. "I do enjoy having an audience."

He stiffened just the slightest bit. "I don't believe she's in the mood to watch one of your little _plays_." He spit out the last word with a vengeance.

"Our beliefs always do tend to differ." The creature snatched up Loki's arm and twisted. I could hear several bones snap. Loki grimaced, though he should have been doing much more than that.

"You're going to kill him." My voice sounded off.

The monster let go of him and turned to me, acknowledging my presence for the first time. "Kill him? You must be mistaken. A little pain never did away with anyone. Besides, he's not immortal, but he's awfully hard to kill."

Loki cradled his arm, glaring. "Anything else?"

"Just one more thing. If you fail him, he will find you-"

Apparently Loki had heard this before, because he simply stepped right out of the vision, taking me with him. I glanced at the staff, but the light pulsing from it with gone.

I watched as the air around his arm shimmered. Somehow I knew he had just healed himself. After the events of the day before, I didn't have any energy to marvel at his magic. Come to think of it, I never really did.

Loki exhaled, slumping a little. I couldn't tell what had exhausted him more- the torture or the healing.

"What exactly was the point of showing me that?" It was the middle of the night, I was tired, and I had just watched the man whose mercy I was at be tortured, however minimal the damage was. From Loki's actions since I had meet him, though, I could say for certain the emotional damage was far worse.

"They- he told me to bring you. I thought he just wanted a witness. I was wrong, apparently." There was something broken and utterly lifeless about his expression that cut me much deeper than it should have. Gentle realization spread across his sharp features. "I was wrong about everything." His voice was nothing more than a whisper, and his staff cluttered to the ground as he seemed to stare through at something that neither of us could see. "Oh, gods, what have I done?" Loki's hands were shaking, and he was a completely different man from the one that had threatened me the day before. "I never meant for it to get this far-" Suddenly he doubled over, clutching his stomach, choking on his own words. I grabbed his wrist to steady him as a knee-jerk reaction, and he met my eyes, his green ones studying my face. There was something in them that wasn't entirely human, or even close to.

I wasn't the only one being controlled.

Whatever demon that was possessing him released its grip, and the odd presence disappeared from his gaze. Loki collected himself, jerking his hand out of my grasp. "Don't touch me again." He directed the glare that had been pointed the creature at me.

I didn't speak again until we were safely back in my cell. He had only just reached the doorway, intending to lock me back in. "What did you mean earlier, when you said you never wanted it to get that far?"

"Some weak part of me wants to tell you everything, mortal. But that's not my place. Perhaps I will one day, when we're rotting together in Hell."

"What makes you so sure I'm going to hell?"

He sneered. "You're so easy to read. I know exactly how you think of me, and I have to say, don't you think loving a murderer is just a bit masochistic?"

My cheeks burned. "I don't-" I started to protest feebly, but he'd already let the door swing shut.


	4. Chapter 4

_A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed, especially PsychoticWaffle! God knows I enjoy the feedback. Don't worry, I'm not going to be too hard on Loki…though the trial's coming up next, so that should be interesting. Keep R&Ring guys -JC_

_When everything you say_

_I'm on my knees_

_Baby I'm on my knees_

_-Ellie Goulding, _Only You

Chapter 4- Loki

I was falling apart.

Slowly, agonizingly being torn to pieces from the inside out. And it was all because of _her_.

I don't know what in Hel possessed me to stay what I did to the girl the night before the master plan was to reach its high point. The words spilled from my mouth of their own free will, and I could tell some part of her actually believed them.

They were, after all, the first bits of truth in a suffocating net of lies.

Of course, by the time I was leaving her again, the twisted lies were back. The resulting look on her face was very nearly to the death of me. Thanos certainly hadn't expected _this_.

One of the…interesting side effects of the curse he'd put on me, the same curse that was impossible to fight, impossible to rebel against no matter how hard I tried, the same one that allowed me only a few moments of absolute clarity, was that I didn't feel anything more than the most basic of emotions. Maybe that was why I couldn't place the ache that burned relentlessly in my chest whenever I thought of the girl.

She had a name I didn't use often- Luna. It didn't seem to fit her. I didn't even know why the heck I cared. There was something odd about her, though; something that separated her from the millions of other mortals I'd seen. It intrigued me for reasons I didn't understand, made me want to stop snapping at her- not that the curse would ever permit me to do something as soft-hearted as that. Instinct told me to kill her, to eliminate the factor that was nothing more than a distraction in the end. But more likely than not, that so-called 'instinct' was Thanos toying with me in an attempt to make me even more of a tool at his disposal.

I couldn't even trust myself anymore.

Dreams plagued me that last night before it all ended. Over and over again I jerked awake with the feel of Luna's blood still between my fingers. And every time I closed my eyes all I could see was blonde hair and green eyes, shadowed by that same strange ache.

I didn't come to see her before I went to the inevitable battle. Better to let her stay innocent to the destruction I was no doubt going to leave behind in my wake for a little while longer.

000

_{Insert climax scene from_ Avengers_}_

I failed. I knew it. Thanos knew it. Even the pathetic group of broken mortals that called themselves the Avengers knew it. It had my intention ever since I had had Selvig build in the failsafe in one of the rare periods of time I had reasonable control over my actions.

Getting thrown around by that beast had shattered the curse; thank the gods, so I was finally seeing things through glass that wasn't tinted red. There was no relief the freedom, though. I was acutely aware just how temporary it would prove to be. Because no tortures Fury or Odin could ever concoct could compare with what I was facing when Thanos's wrath found me.

Found her.

It takes a horrifying amount of carnage to make me feel remorse. That much was clear, judging from the pile of debris that used to be Manhattan. There was no telling how many bodies lay beneath it all. So why should it affect me at all if one insignificant mortal woman lived or died?

I could count the people I really cared on one hand. And each one was a dangerous weakness. The last thing I needed was another one.

D*** Luna Haunting.

_A/N: Sorry that was so short. Next chapter will be the normal length, I promise. –JC _


	5. Chapter 5

_And all around these golden beacons_

_I see nothing but black_

_-Ellie Goulding, _Black & Gold

Chapter 5- Luna

"Tell me about yourself, Miss Haunting." A woman with red hair eyed for across the desk, undoubtedly bored out of her mind. _That makes two of us._

"Are the questions really necessary?"

She sighed. "Technically, yes. But I think we'd both rather cut to the chase, so I'll narrow it down to two." She folded her arms. "Did you know Loki before he took you hostage?"

"No. I'd heard about him on the news, of course, but-"

"Are you prepared to testify against him in his upcoming trial?"

"Yes," I answered, but only because I knew she expected me too.

"You're good to go." The woman stood up, gathering her papers.

I took a deep breath. "Wait. You said you worked for S.H.I.E.L.D. Loki- he said something about the agency lying about my dad. You wouldn't happen to know anything about a James Haunting?"

She didn't try to hide her annoyance. "Look, kid, that's classified. I wish I could tell you the truth, but they'd kill me if I did. You've been through a lot and it's probably not fair to hide something like that from you. But it's not my choice."

I should have never have asked about my father. Now she was just treating me like a child. "One more thing- what's your name?" I wasn't even sure why it mattered at all to me.

She paused for a second. "Natasha."

000

Two hours later, I was on a jet (piloted by Natasha, ironically) heading to New Mexico, from where we were apparently going to a place known as Asgard. I was slowly beginning to wrap my mind around this whole 'nine realms' concept. Hopefully the trial wouldn't be complicated, because beyond I was going to be speaking at it, I had no idea what I was doing.

Natasha had been the one to let me out of my cell. She'd told me that Loki had lost the battle, but no one had bothered to give me any details. I had only a vague impression of how much collateral damage there was. I wasn't even really sure who the winning side was- humanity, obviously, but whom specifically?

Sometime later Natasha came back to where I was sitting, discreetly slipping a file onto my lap on her way to the restroom. She was gone before I could think to say thank you. On the front in bold, printed letters was JAMES HAUNTING, D. I opened it with trembling fingers, wondering why in the world she'd relented.

I read the first sentence and nearly flipped out.

My dad had been a spy. An agent for S.H.I.E.L.D., in fact. He'd been killed on a mission in Japan just after my seventeenth birthday- a few days after he'd supposedly abandoned me.

My head reeling, I leaned back against the seat. That couldn't have been his first mission, but there was no way I could have been completely naïve as to the ones before Japan.

Unless my mom had covered up for him.

Looking back, I had remembered a few unexpected business trips he'd taken- mostly when I was young. Mom had always seemed so worried, and then so relieved when he'd got back. One of those 'business trips, I realized, had been just before she'd gone insane. I hadn't understood why at the time. But now…I could imagine how the overbearing anxiety she had no doubt felt several times over the years could push someone past their breaking point. It scared me, how much sense it all made now.

When Natasha passed me again, I handed her the file back. The last thing I needed was a trip down memory lane, and especially one as twisted as this.

After what felt like an eternity, we made it to New Mexico. Moments after we landed, I started to wonder about my sanity. "Um…Natasha…please tell me I'm not the only one who thinks we're being sucked up by a rainbow bridge."

She almost laughed. "No, sadly, you're not delirious. We are actually being sucked up by a rainbow bridge."

"How reassuring." I wasn't sure if I was being sarcastic or not. Both, probably.

We ended up rolling to stop on another, more solid- yet still rainbow- bridge. A seriously buff guy I'd been told was named Thor, and a second who was his father called Odin, were waiting for us, wearing clothes just as foreign to me as Loki's were. They welcomed us, Odin somewhat grudgingly, and led us into a massive gold palace. Everything seemed to be made out of some kind of precious metal. Perhaps the Asgardians were not as technology-forward as we were, but they sure as heck knew how to make an impression.

The room the trial was being held in was no exception. The seating was set up like the coliseum, encircling a raised platform. The walls were completely covered in ornate bronze designs, which would have looked a lot cooler had my attention not been immediately pulled in by the man standing on the center platform. Loki was the one dark figure in the room, somehow still holding onto his dignity, even though he was cuffed to a rail. He glared at us, his gaze softening just a fraction when he glanced at me. I could tell even from a distance he'd gotten cut up pretty badly in the battle. I tried not to think about how strangely intriguing that cut on the bridge of his nose was. I had always been one to be pulled in by stupid, little things like that.

I inhaled slowly as the seats gradually filled up, and Odin took his place in a slightly higher chair. I barely heard the other witnesses as they made their statements against him, Thor among them- though it was clearly paining him. All the while, my emotions kept tugging me in different directions. My rational side said that I should do what they were expecting me to- testify evidence that would most likely d*** him to prison, or worse.

Odin called my name, shattering my chaotic train of thought. I made my way over to a sort of podium, feeling Loki's eyes on me. I turned to face him, meeting his cold, unforgiving gaze steadily, and attempted to pull myself together, even though I had known all along it was a lost cause.

I opened my mouth, and the words spilled out of their own accord.


	6. Chapter 6

_A/N: Really sorry I didn't post last week. I'm posting Ch 7 as well to make for it. R&R -JC_

000

_You tread water_

_Fighting for the air in your lungs_

_Move, move closer_

_Maybe you can right all your wrongs_

_-Ellie Goulding, _Your Biggest Mistake

Chapter 6- Luna

"I could tell you that he heartlessly tortured me. I could tell you that he was always threating me, that he had every intention to kill me in the most agonizing way possible. But I'd be lying. Obviously there was some violence involved. But none of it was…how should I put this…significantly brutal. And I know I'm not your most trustworthy source, but based on some of things I saw in past couple days…" I inhaled slowly, giving myself a moment to think about what I was saying. "It was pretty clear he wasn't acting on his own. This picture- it's so much bigger than any of us know. I don't even think New York was Loki's idea originally. I realize that doesn't pardon him from any of the causalities, but killing him is no solution. H*ll, you'd probably be doing exactly what his superiors want you to- getting rid of a loose end." My audience was dead silent, taking in what I was saying slowly. Hopefully that was a good sign. "I'm not sure what led to the battle in New York, and I doubt I ever will. All I'm certain of is that while Loki's hands are covered in blood, his intentions were part of a master part laid out by people with far redder ones. And all I'm asking of you is to just consider an alternate to capital punishment. Thank you," I nodded to Odin before stepping of the platform, trying to make an effort at being respectful. I hoped my words had made sense to someone other than me, because even with my testimony it wasn't likely Loki stood a chance. I tried not to care, but it was war lost before it was even begun. I watched Thor's father walk over to a group of important-looking Asgardians- the jury, perhaps?

I waited several eternities for Odin to face to crowd again, his voice, feeble as it was, somehow cutting through the excited conversation of hundreds. I closed my eyes, pressing my lips together. "People of Asgard…the Council has reached a verdict." Guilty as charged with innumerable deaths, I knew. There was no way they would ever let him live, not after everything that had gone down. "We have decided that Loki, son of Laufey, will serve a lifetime sentence in prison for his penance."

It took a moment to sink in, but when it did, I nearly stopped breathing. They were going to let him live- albeit in jail, but it was more, so much more, than I had expected.

000

The aftermath of the trial was a complete blur. I vaguely remember asking a stranger for directions to the dungeon, where I knew the guards would be taking Loki. Sure enough, he was in the second-closest cell to the door, rubbing his wrists sullenly.

He barely glanced over as a guard unlocked the door and let me in. "Why did you do it?"

"Do what?" I asked even though I knew exactly what he meant.

"Defend me at the trial. You could have just as easily told them the truth. I can't come after you now." Loki laughed bitterly.

I shook my head. "I wasn't lying. I have no idea what you're referring to."

He just stared at me. "I can't get a read on you. You were never afraid of me. You had the chance to sentence me to death, and you didn't take it."

I was about to protest that he was wrong, I had feared him, but I realized he was right. Even when he had threatened me, temporarily_ blinded _me, I hadn't truly been afraid. I thought back to the horror I'd felt up on the witness stand. "Even if it wasn't the truth…I still would have lied."

"But for what reason?" He leaned in.

"I think you know." I met his eyes. I could tell that he wanted the same thing I did. A second later Loki's lips were against mine as he pressed closer to me. My fingers found themselves tangled in his hair, and a soft laugh escaped me. _What the heck am I doing? _ He pulled back just a bit to nuzzle my neck. I closed my eyes, knowing I had just sealed my fate.

And I wasn't sure loving him was such a horrible thing.

000

**Loki**

Kissing Luna was like being alive again after months of being dead. I knew I shouldn't love her. It could never end well, especially since I was sitting in prison at the moment. Suddenly all I wanted was to get her as far from Odin as possible. If he found about her feelings for me- about my feelings for her- I wouldn't put it past him to do something horrible to Luna for allowing her love for me to weigh her decision at the trial, and to murder me for seducing her. It wasn't like I meant to fall for a mortal, or even meant to make her fall for me. And that wasn't taking into consideration _him_. He'd call Luna a distraction, kill her slowly, and stain the floor with her blood so I wouldn't forget my mistake. She had no idea what she was getting into. But then again, neither did I.

"They're making me leave." She whispered. "But I'll come back for you as soon as I can." I nodded, pangs of sadness at her absence running through me, just as the guard down the hall shouted that her time was up.

I waited until her back was turned before I replied. "Or maybe I'll come find you myself." She glanced back at me, her eyes shining with tears, a small smile on her mouth for just a second before her poker face returned.

I was going to keep my promise if it killed me. All I needed was the perfect moment.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7- Luna

_Two Months Later_

The clock on my bed side table read 11:59 p.m.

The least couple months had been a blur of ordinary, uneventful boredom. I didn't doubt that S.H.I. . was watching me. On the jet back home, I had managed to convince Natasha to give me a copy of Loki's file. It hadn't been easy, and I'm sure that alone was enough to make her suspect that there was more to Loki's and my relationship than she knew, but it was worth it.

I was staring down at the few photos of Loki enclosed in the file when I heard the sound of a lock being picked, following my front door swinging open. I pushed myself out of my bed, aware that I was wearing nothing but a cami and running shorts. My first thought was that Fury had finally decided to confront me. Thinking I would have preferred a burglar to him, I grabbed the pistol I'd hidden under my bed years earlier purely out of paranoia.

The dark figure was standing in my front hallway, an air of self-satisfaction surrounding them. It wasn't until I caught a glimpse of their profile in a mirror that I realized it most definitely not Nick Fury.

My heart skipped a beat.

He had found me.

"Loki?" I called out into the darkness, relief in my tone.

The figure stepped into the dim moonlight flowing in from a nearly window, and instantly I could tell I had been wrong once again. Cold eyes glared back at me as the glamour dropped off the figure like a clock. A shiver pulsed through me as I recognized them. The Other sneered at me, flashing his bright red gums.

"We meet again." His voice dripped with poison. "And I'm certain your Loki will all too happy to hear about it."

The last thing I remember was my own scream ringing in my ears.

Cool fingers pressed against my wrist, searching for a pulse. Wariness and exhaustion weighed down on me, but they felt unnatural, and my head throbbed. Drugged. Someone must have drugged me…

"You've gone and got yourself into trouble again. I'm honestly starting to think you have a death wish."

There was a seductive edge to the voice that seemed familiar, but I couldn't see whoever was speaking through the darkness of my eyelids.

"I broke out of prison for you. You should be on your pathetic knees thanking me." The owner of the voice was only half-teasing.

The slap came out of nowhere, hitting me squarely across the face. My eyes shot open, the dim light from a small candle near me almost blinding me. Its flame barely managed to illuminate the walls of an abandoned warehouse. Loki was sitting cross-legged across from me, smirking at my obvious discomfort. "Now isn't this oddly ironic?"

"Shut up, you." I was leaning on what looked like an old-fashioned, rusted headboard. On either side of me, one of the gold poles was wrapped around each of my wrists, my arms stretched out. I couldn't remember how the heck I had even gotten there. It scared me to think how strong a person would have to be to move the poles that easily. "Get me out of here."

He bit his lip, forcing back a smile. "Why should I?"

"Oh, I don't know, maybe so I actually have a decent chance of surviving."

"Remind me again why I care about whether you live or die."

I snorted. "I seem to remember I saved your sorry life not two months ago."

Suddenly Loki froze, his gaze flickering for a second over to a door I hadn't noticed before. I could only see it when I looked out of the corner of my eye.

The Other appeared, a phantom with glinting eyes, the rest of his face all but hidden from view. "It's been a while, Loki."

Loki stood and turned to confront him. If I hadn't known better, I would have thought his stance in front of me was protective. No, more likely it was possessive. You know, the whole _if I can't kill you, no one else can _thing. "A while isn't nearly long enough. We had a deal, though you may be too thick to recall it. I've done my part of it- getting you a way into Asgard and to the Tessaract. Not that you made of use of that. I believe my payment is due. You're two months late."

The creature shook his head with false ruefulness. "I'm not the one who's two months late. Nor am I the one who failed to finish my part of the agreement. There's no way you're getting back into Asgard, so Odin won't be dead any time, at least not by your hand." He made a disapproving noise in the back of his throat. "Thanos didn't come into Asgard during these past months because killing the All-father was _your_ job. But of course, you let yourself be lured out by a mortal girl- how weak. You didn't complete your side of the bargain, so you can't expect us to keep ours." The Other laughed. "You, Loki, are just too vain to realize how expendable you truly are. And, at the moment, you're worthless to him. I really would enjoy watching your life bleed out of you, but Thanos told mine that it would be much more painful for you if that girl you're ready to die for over there couldn't remember a single word you've said to her." Fear paralyzed me. Suddenly the metal bands wrapped around my wrists snapped in half, letting me fall onto the cold concrete. The Other was walking toward me, his arm stretched out in Loki's direction. My former captor went flying into a wall, leaving a dent the size of his body. The creature pressed his hand against my forehead, and I slide into an unnatural sleep.

000

I blinked open my eyes. Kneeling beside me was a man with dark hair and strange clothes, looking down at me with sharp concern. I pushed myself up on my elbows. I was in a warehouse that clearly hadn't been used in years. The last thing I could remember was walking into a dark underground tunnel, wondering where it led to.

"Luna?" The guy above me asked. Luna…I was pretty sure that was my name. For some reason, my memories felt clouded, drifting in and out of the dark fog. The dark-haired man seemed familiar, but I couldn't place his face. Finally I found my voice.

"Who are you?"


End file.
